[Adopted 11-5-1966 by Ord. No. 5-66; amended
in its entirety 7-20-2015 by Ord.
No. 15-15A]
A.
ACT
APPLICANT
EXCAVATION
PENNDOT
PERMITTEE
PERSON
STREET
TOWNSHIP
TOWNSHIP STANDARD CONSTRUCTION DOCUMENTS
TRAVEL LANE
The following words, when used in this article, shall have the meanings
ascribed to them in this section, except in those instances where
the context clearly indicates otherwise:
The Act shall be understood to mean the Pennsylvania Underground
Utility Line Protection Law,[1] Act 287 of 1974, as amended by Act 121 of 2003, and as
may be supplemented or amended from time to time.
Any person, firm, or corporation submitting a street opening
permit application as defined herein. The applicant shall be a utility
owner or adjacent landowner; a contractor and/or developer may submit
an application as an agent for the utility owner or adjacent landowner,
provided the name of the utility owner or adjacent landowner is identified
as the applicant.
Any activity within the right-of-way of any street, alley,
or cartway which involves cutting, breaking, or disturbing the surface
thereof. In this article, the term "opening" shall have essentially
the same meaning as "excavation."
The Department of Transportation of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Any person, firm, or corporation issued a street opening
permit as defined herein. The permittee shall be the name of the utility
owner or adjacent landowner as submitted on the street permit opening
application.
Any natural person, partnership, form, association, corporation
or municipal authority.
Any public street, avenue, road, square, alley, highway,
or other public place located in the Township of Bethlehem and established
for the use of vehicles, but shall not include state highways.
The Township of Bethlehem, Northampton County, Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania.
The Bethlehem Township standard construction documents as
prepared by the Pidcock Company, dated March 2008, as may be amended
from time to time.
The designated width of a roadway pavement to carry through
or turning traffic and to separate it from opposing traffic, traffic
in the same direction of flow but occupying other travel lanes, a
parking lane, or the shoulder. The travel lane may be designated by
pavement markings. If the travel lane is not designated on both sides
by pavement markings, the travel lane shall be 12 feet in width as
measured from an adjoining pavement marking or from the center line
of the road, or from the edge of another travel lane (should the road
contain more than two unmarked travel lanes).
[1]
Editor's Note: See 73 P.S. § 176 et seq.
B.
In this article, the singular shall include the plural and the masculine
shall include the feminine and the neuter.
Any person, firm, or corporation who shall desire to make any
opening or excavation in any of the streets in the Township shall
submit an application to the Township Manager or his/her designee,
in writing, for that purpose. Such application shall be made upon
forms to be furnished by the Township and shall set forth the name
and address of the applicant, the location of the proposed opening
or excavation, and the approximate length, width, and depth thereof,
and shall contain an agreement on the part of the applicant that the
work shall be done in full compliance with the ordinances of the Township
and the laws of the commonwealth in relation thereto, and that the
applicant shall well and truly save, defend and keep harmless the
Township, including its elected and/or appointed officials, employees,
and consultants, from and indemnify them against any and all actions,
suits, demands, payments, costs and charges for or by reason of the
proposed opening or excavation, and all damages to persons or property
resulting in any manner therefrom, or occurring in the prosecution
of the work connected therewith, or from any other matter, cause or
thing relating thereto.
A.
Before any permits shall be issued to open or excavate any street
in the Township, the applicant shall pay a permit fee in a minimum
amount as shall be set from time to time by resolution of the Board
of Commissioners to cover the cost of inspection and other incidental
services in connection therewith. When application shall be made to
open any longitudinal opening or excavation in excess of 25 lineal
feet, before any permit shall be issued so to open or excavate the
applicant shall pay, in addition to such minimum fee, an additional
fee per foot as shall be set from time to time by resolution of the
Board of Commissioners.
B.
The following items, whose fees shall be as set from time to time
by resolution of the Board of Commissioners, shall apply to Township
right-of-way occupancy for other than street excavation:
C.
Any excavation or opening to be located in Township-owned land other
than street rights-of-way such as common open space, parks, etc.:
an amount as set from time to time by resolution of the Board of Commissioners.
D.
When a longitudinal opening or excavation exceeds 200 feet in length,
the cost of the permit shall be equal to the Township's construction
observation costs, and shall be calculated according to the following
method:
(1)
A fee in an amount as shall be set from time to time by resolution
of the Board of Commissioners shall accompany the permit application.
(2)
The total compensation of the Township Construction Observer, including
salary, fringe benefits, etc., shall be included in the cost. The
Township, at its discretion, may utilize a representative of the Township
Engineer as the Construction Observer. In such cases, the charge rate
based on the Township Engineer's professional rate schedule in
place at the time of the work shall be utilized to calculate the construction
observation fee.
(3)
The applicant for the permit shall estimate the amount of working
days required for the project, and shall pay to the Township an estimated
amount for construction observation in advance of the work taking
place.
(4)
In the event that the cost exceeds the amount that has been provided
by the applicant, the applicant shall reimburse the Township for the
additional costs. In the event that the amount paid in advance is
more than the actual costs, the Township shall reimburse the applicant.
A street opening permit shall be issued only to persons furnishing
public utility services, or to the owner or owners of the real property
adjoining the location where such opening or excavation is to be made.
Any permit issued hereunder shall specify the location where
the opening or excavation is to be made, the approximate permitted
length, width, and depth thereof, and the time within which the work
for which the permit is granted is to be completed.
A permit may be issued to the applicant after all the requirements
therefor have been filed. If the application is disapproved, written
notice of said disapproval, together with reasons therefor, shall
be given to the applicant.
The work authorized by the permit is subject to all the provisions
of the Act. It shall be the permittee's responsibility to contact
the utilities that have recorded their facilities in compliance with
said Act.
Any person who shall open or excavate any street in the Township
shall thoroughly and completely refill the opening or excavation in
such a manner as to prevent any settling thereafter, and shall restore
the surface to the same condition as it was before the opening or
excavation, and such restoration shall be in accordance with the more
restrictive of the PENNDOT Specifications Publication 408, as may
be subsequently revised and/or amended, and the Township standard
construction documents, both of which are hereby adopted and incorporated
by reference as if set forth herein at length as requirements of the
Township. For restoration of surfaces of streets in the Township,
as restored, the surface shall conform to the proper grade and be
of the same surface material as the part of the thoroughfare immediately
adjoining the opening. If within two years after the restoration of
the surface as herein provided, defects shall appear therein resulting
from defective backfilling by the permittee, the permittee shall reimburse
the Township for the cost of all necessary repairs to the permanent
paving.
All other work in connection with openings in any street, including
excavation, maintenance and protection of traffic, refilling and temporary
paving shall be done by or for the person to whom or which the permit
has been issued at his or its expense, and all such work shall be
subject to the provisions of this article and to the approval of the
designated Township official, provided that the Township Manager or
his/her designee, may, if deemed necessary to the proper performance
of the work, require that cutting of the surface of streets and the
backfilling of all excavations therein shall be done by the Township,
in which event the permittee shall pay the actual cost of the work
performed by the Township.
A.
No opening or excavation in any street shall extend from a travel
lane into an adjacent travel lane a distance greater than two feet
before the initial travel lane is refilled and its surface restored
to an acceptable temporary condition.
B.
No more than 100 feet longitudinally shall be opened in any street
at any one time.
C.
The work of excavation shall be so conducted as not to interfere
with the water mains, sewers, or any other subsurface lines or facilities,
or their connection with any structures, until permission of the proper
authorities in connection with such subsurface lines or facilities
shall have been obtained.
D.
No tunneling shall be allowed without the express permission of the
Township Manager or his/her designee and as endorsed upon the permit.
The backfilling of a tunnel excavation shall be made only in the presence
of the Township Manager or his/her designee, and shall be done only
in a method acceptable to the Township.
E.
All openings or excavations shall be backfilled promptly with PENNDOT No. 2A aggregate and thoroughly compacted in layers, each layer shall not exceed eight inches in depth, in accordance with the standard construction documents. For the purposes of this article, the use of slag is not permitted. In the event of any conflict between these requirements, PENNDOT Publication 408, and the Township standard construction documents, the most restrictive requirement shall apply. In the event that a street would be totally excavated and a completely new street constructed, the most restrictive requirements of Chapter 230, Subdivision and Land Development, relating to street construction, PENNDOT Publication 408, and the Township standard construction documents shall apply.
F.
All temporary pavement restoration shall conform to the Township
standard construction documents and be maintained for a minimum period
of 30 days and until final pavement restoration is performed. The
Township can, at its own discretion, waive the required thirty-day
waiting period prior to final pavement restoration. After the required
thirty-day period, permanent pavement restoration shall be performed
as specified herein.
G.
On concrete base streets, such base shall be replaced with concrete,
and the minimum size of the opening or excavation shall be 16 square
feet.
H.
All permanent paving restoration shall be completed within 90 days
of the issuance of the permit (unless otherwise specified), in accordance
with the standard construction documents, and as specified herein.
Where an opening or excavation is made within a travel lane, the entire
existing width of said travel lane shall receive the mill and overlay
as specified in the standard construction documents details for permanent
trench restoration. Where an opening or excavation is made within
50 feet of any opening or excavation within the travel lane by the
same permittee, utility, and/or landowner, then that permittee shall
perform additional mill and overlay for the full existing width of
the travel lane to encompass the entire longitudinal distance between
the outside limits of those openings or excavations.
I.
During the making of any excavation in the street, every necessary
and reasonable precaution shall be taken by the permittee and the
parties making the same to keep the street in a safe and passable
condition both day and night by guards, barriers, lanterns and other
devices, and all excavating permits granted hereunder are granted
under and subject to the express condition that the permittee to whom
the same is issued shall indemnify, save and keep harmless the Township,
and its elected and/or appointed officials, employees, and consultants,
from any losses in damages, or otherwise whatsoever which may or shall
be occasioned at any time by the said excavation, or by any matter
placed in said excavation.
J.
The permittee shall notify the Township Manager or his/her designee
when the opening or excavation is ready for backfilling and before
any backfilling is done, when backfilling work is completed, when
temporary restoration shall be installed, and when permanent restoration
shall be installed so that the Township may arrange for appropriate
construction observation.
K.
A portion of the roadway may be used for staging of equipment and
materials during the workday; however, all materials and equipment
must be removed from the street right-of-way at the end of the day,
unless otherwise agreed to by the Township Manager or his/her designee.
Any areas within the street right-of-way disturbed for the staging
of equipment and/or material shall be returned to its original condition
no later than 30 days after final pavement restoration of the street
opening is concluded.
L.
In the event that any work performed by or for a permittee shall,
in the opinion of the Township Manager or his/her designee be unsatisfactory
and the work is not corrected in accordance with the instructions
and within the time fixed by the Township Manager or his/her designee,
or in the event that the work for which the permit was granted is
not completed within the time fixed herein or as specified by the
permit, the Township may proceed to correct such unsatisfactory work
or complete any such work not completed, and charge the cost thereof,
plus 20% to the permittee.
In the case of any leak, explosion or other accident in any
subsurface pipe, line, construction or apparatus, it shall be lawful
for the person owning or responsible for such pipe, line, construction
or apparatus to commence an excavation to remedy such condition before
securing a permit, provided that application for a permit shall be
made immediately and not later than the next business day thereafter,
and that all other provisions of this article are fully attended to
by the owner or person responsible for such pipe, line, construction
or apparatus, the Township Manager or his/her designee, after such
notice as he/she shall deem necessary under the circumstances of the
particular case, shall proceed to do the work necessary and required
by such emergency, and charge the same on the basis of cost plus 20%
to such owner or person.
The permission herein granted does not confer upon the permittee
or its contractors the right to cut, remove or destroy trees or shrubbery
within the legal right-of-way except under specifications, regulations
and conditions as the Township may prescribe.
Prior to the Township undertaking the reconstruction and/or
resurfacing of any street, the Township Manager or his/her designee
shall give timely notice to all persons owning property abutting on
any street about to be paved or improved within the Township, and
to all public utility companies operating in the Township, and all
such persons and utility companies shall make all utility connections,
as well as any repairs thereto which would necessitate excavation
of said street within 30 days from the giving of such notice, unless
such time is extended, in writing, for cause shown by the Township
Manager or his/her designee. New paving shall not be opened or excavated
for a period of five years after the completion of any Township commissioned
reconstruction or resurfacing, except in case of emergency, the existence
of which emergency and the necessity for the opening or excavation
of such paving to be determined by the Township Manager or his/her
designee. If it is sought to excavate upon or open a sewer or other
utility within five years after the completion of the reconstruction
or resurfacing thereof for any reason other than an emergency as above
stated, the applicant shall make written application to the Board
of Commissioners and a permit for such opening shall be issued only
after express approval of the Board of Commissioners.
If at any time in the future the roadway is widened, reconstructed
or the alignment or grades are changed, the permittee further agrees
to change or relocate all or any part of the structures covered by
this permit which interfere with the improvement of the roadway at
its own cost and expense.
No new water, sewer, steam or gas main or electric, telephone
or other utility line shall hereafter be laid or constructed, and
no such existing main or line shall be extended, in any of the streets
of the Township until the plan therefor shall have been first filed
with the Township Manager or his/her designee and such plan, and the
exact location of such main or line, approved by him/her. The Township
Manager or his/her designee shall not approve the locating of any
such main or line at a depth of less than 30 inches from the surface
of the street unless he/she shall be convinced that locating the same
at a depth of more than 30 inches from the surface is impossible or
impractical.
No company, corporation or association shall excavate any street
or alley without first giving to the Township a bond with some acceptable
trust or surety company as surety in the sum of $10,000, conditioned
for the faithful performance of these provisions and also for any
and all damages, claims, demands, suits, costs and counsel fees occasioned
or arising from the digging up, opening or closing of said streets
and alleys. The requirement may be waived for municipal-owned utilities.
Payment for all work done by the Township under the provisions
hereof shall be made by the person made liable therefor under the
provisions hereof within 30 days after a bill therefor is sent to
such person by the Township. Upon failure to pay such charges within
such time, the same shall by collectible by the Township by an action
in assumpsit or in the manner provided by law for the collection of
municipal claims.
Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate any provision
of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be sentenced to pay
a fine of not more than $300 and/or to imprisonment for a term not
to exceed 90 days. Every day that a violation of this article continues
shall constitute a separate offense.
The provisions of this article shall not apply to laying sidewalks
or curbs.
